😎 2026 Marketing Calendar Has Arrived!

X publishes the 2026 marketing calendar. The interactive 2026 calendar lists global events and lets you filter by region or event type. Handy for content and ad planning. It doesn't show engagement metrics, so pair it with X ad tools and follow X's updated ad quality rules.

Epic bookmark for campaign calendars! 🤯 ~TWISM

Together with Roku Ads Manager: Get the best out of the holiday season.

Over the next year, Roku predicts that 100% of the streaming audience will see ads. For growth marketers in 2026, CTV will remain an important “safe space” as AI creates widespread disruption in the search and social channels. Plus, easier access to self-serve CTV ad buying tools and targeting options will lead to a surge in locally-targeted streaming campaigns.

Read our guide to find out why growth marketers should make sure CTV is part of their 2026 media mix.

Learn more.

✨ Want to advertise in TWISM?
Reach 70K+ social media pros • Top-Rated Service • We optimize your copy for free

Book TWISM Ad »

Instagram shifts to Reels-first home feed. Instagram now favors Reels in the home feed, marking the end of curated-grid campaigns. Marketers must speed up production, modularize creative, and iterate constantly to stay discoverable.

Start building fast test-and-learn systems. 🔁 ~TWISM

Instagram tests 'Top 5' Stories. Share your Stories with only five people: a private audience option that limits reach to a curated list, useful for VIP previews, beta tests, or close-fan outreach.

Instagram adds a 10K follower filter for DMs. Instagram now lets you filter DMs to show messages from accounts with 10,000+ followers, so you can spot creator pitches and prioritize high-reach outreach.

Instagram adds 'Hello 2026!' chat theme. A new visual theme hits Messenger and Instagram DMs. Brands can use it to freshen chats for campaigns; ask followers to update apps to see it.

Ray-Ban Meta v21 update adds 9 new features. Meta's latest software update brings Find Device to locate your glasses, Hyperlapse for up to 30-minute time-lapse clips, slow-motion capture, and Conversation Focus to amplify voices in noisy environments. Spotify integration now plays music that matches what you're looking at, say, "Hey Meta, play a song to go with my view."

Meta is developing 'Avocado' and 'Mango' AI models for 2026. Meta's superintelligence lab is building a new LLM codenamed Avocado with improved coding abilities, plus an image and video model called Mango, both expected in the first half of 2026.

Meta AI moderation is flagging business accounts. Business owners report accounts incorrectly banned by Meta's AI moderation systems, with recovery proving difficult. Meta says account hacks are down 30%, but false positives are frustrating marketers who rely on the platform for revenue.

Document everything and set up backup accounts, as AI moderation mistakes are rising. ⚠️ ~TWISM

Threads adds podcast previews. Hosts can upload short episode clips to the feed; Threads now surfaces show links in bios and across the app, making discovery and promo easier.

Start clipping 30–60s trailers to boost listens. Free promo! 🎧 ~TWISM

Threads adds an annual snow effect. A seasonal snow overlay now appears atop the FY feed; it's cosmetic but grabs attention, match holiday posts to ride the visual lift.

Together with Beehiiv: Elevate your marketing with your own newsletter.

A big 2026 starts now. True builders use this stretch of time to get ahead, not slow down. Launch your website with AI, publish a stunning newsletter, and start earning more money quickly through the beehiiv Ad Network. Use code BIG30 for 30 percent off your first three months. Start building for 30% off today.

YouTube stops sending US view data to Billboard. YouTube will stop sending US view data to Billboard after 1/16/26, saying Billboard's formula favors subscription streams over ad-supported plays. That risks lowering chart visibility for music videos and makes YouTube metrics more important for promotion.

YouTube adds Search with Lens on Shorts. A new 'Search with Google Lens' button on some Shorts lets viewers identify objects or products in-frame, making content more shoppable.

TikTok adds seasonal animations and year-in-review recaps. TikTok auto-builds editable "Year in Review" videos from your 2025 public posts, a ready-made seasonal hook for campaigns and creator collabs.

These recaps are a shareable growth hack. 🎄 ~TWISM

TikTok offers $10,000 to boost Branded Buzz. TikTok One has a $10K reward pool to get creators onto Branded Buzz; creators can earn up to $1,500 and receive boosted distribution, so brands can more easily recruit talent and amplify campaigns.

Audible launches 'Best of BookTok' hub. Audible launches a Best of #BookTok hub (app + web) with genre Collections and visual Badges to flag trending titles, bringing BookTok discovery into Audible and making it easier for publishers and creators to convert buzz into sales.

TikTok Shop adds digital gift cards. Buy email-delivered cards loaded $10–$500; recipients need a TikTok account. Brands can sell gifts, run promos, and use upcoming video messages/unboxing to drive purchases.

How SMBs can build their LinkedIn brand. LinkedIn's SMB guide recommends regular posting, Video posts (shared 20x more), Employee Advocacy and targeted Advertising to reach decision-makers and grow your Company Page.

Start with short Video posts and an Employee Advocacy plan to amplify reach.🔥 ~TWISM

Grok is now available in X Chat. Long-press a Chat message and select Ask Grok to get instant AI replies inside Chat. Draft replies, brainstorm content, and speed customer support.

X shows how many ads you've avoided. X now shows a count of ads you've 'avoided' in the app. That transparency could shift user sentiment and ad engagement; marketers should watch ad fatigue and CPMs.

Unilever's 20x influencer push reshapes market. Unilever is scaling its influencer roster 20× to ~300,000 and shifting half its ad budget to social, pushing rivals to up influencer spend and driving creator fees higher.

Prioritize creators who drive measurable results, or you'll just add to the noise. 😎~TWISM

2026 creator marketing report. New analysis pegs the creator market at $480B (ad spend $37B in 2025) and maps platform shifts, compensation benchmarks, and attribution tactics so brands can cut concentration risk and negotiate outcome-based deals.

Snapchat launches Animate It Lens. Available to Lens+ subscribers, Animate It transforms any text prompt into a short, shareable animated video in seconds. Great for reactions, product clips, or fast creative tests across Stories and ads.

Amazon captures 46% of AI marketplace traffic. Amazon took 46% of AI referrals (~11.9M), with Walmart, Etsy and eBay next. For marketers: prioritize Amazon product SEO and feeds for AI discovery, while maintaining niche channels for targeted reach.

Which US adults use each social app? Pew: YouTube reaches 84% of adults, Instagram 50%, and TikTok 37%; Threads, Bluesky, and Truth all under 8%.

This is your audience map. Prioritize YouTube for broad reach and Instagram/TikTok for younger, multicultural audiences. 🔎 ~TWISM

AI and video commerce define 2026. IAB says marketers must move AI from experiments to production, lean on first-party data and creators, and build immersive video commerce and privacy-first strategies to keep scaling.

iHeartRadio adds video podcasts. iHeartRadio will support video podcasts in early 2026 for U.S. users, letting creators distribute full-length video via RSS alongside audio at no cost. Creators keep monetization rights, choose hosting, and decide whether video or audio-only.

That’s all for today. Thanks for reading. Now…

Go BIG or go home!

~ Josh from “This Week in Social Media”

Questions? Reply to this email or send one here. I read all emails.

Was this newsletter forwarded to you?

Subscribe to “This Week in Social Media” here »